Combination hair curling ring and retaining clip for producing pin curls



Nov. 22, 1966 A. H. LIAROS 3,286,716

COMBINATION HAIR CUR LING RING AND RETAINING CLIP FOR PRODUCING PIN CURLS Filed Jan. 27, 1964 T-T I IO F16. Z. 2/ 1/7 1 9 13 z i "I /5 3 3 .J\. 0 1e /7 22 /4 22 V3 INVENTOR.

4R7'f/UR H. 4/4303 ZMZQ W United States Patent 3,286,716 COMBINATION HAIR CURLING RING AND RETAINING CLIP FOR PRODUCING PIN CURLS Arthur H. Liaros, 417 Springville Ave., Eggertsville, N.Y. Filed Jan. 27, 1964, Ser. No. 340,399 1 Claim. (Cl. 132-40) This invention relates to hair curling devices and particularly to devices for forming what are known in the hair dressing art as pin curls.

Pin curls are commonly fashioned by winding several strands of hair into a circular loop and then securing the loop by means of bobby pins or the like. Various mechanical devices and appliances have been proposed for making pin curls but none of these devices have proved acceptable in the practical art.

The present invention provides an extremely simple one-piece molded plastic pin curl shaping device which is smooth and flexible, and which is extremely easy to use. The pin curl device of the present invention comprises a plastic ring or annulus which is entirely open at the center and which comprises a circular rim or felly, the transverse cr-oss-section of the ring being such that its width in an axial direction is only a fraction ofits diameter whereby the device may be used selectively in fashioning pin curls of different types, that is, pin curls oriented in different directions with respect to the scalp being operated upon.

In the hair dressing art it is perhaps most common to pin the curl to the head of the person, after the curl is wound, in a flatwise condition.

It is frequently desirable to have the pin curl set up in what may be referred to as a perpendicular position wherein the plane of the loop forming the pin curl is perpendicular to the scalp. It is difficult to arrange pin curls in this fashion with the devices and methods available to the prior art. In this connection, pin curls are not to be confused with the types of curls wherein cylinders of substantial length in an axial direction are wound with hair and attached to the scalp with the axis of the cylinder extending generally parallel to the surface of the scalp.

With the device of the present invention pin curls are wound on the periphery of the ring member or annulus and then may be secured with respect to the scalp either flatwise thereagainst or with the plane of the loop extending perpendicular to the scalp. Pin curls are usually associated flatwise with the sides and back of the head and so-called stand-up pin curls are more commonly applied to the top of the head, although there are no strict limitations in this connection.

This freedom of choice of the direction of extent of the pin curl with respect to the scalp is highly desirable and the provision of a single device which may be freely attached in either of these ways optionally and by more choice of the operator of the manner of attaching the wound curling device to the scalp constitutes a significant advance in the hair dressing art and more particularly in the art of devices for curling human hair.

In employing the pin cu-rl device of the present invention the strand of hair is wound on the periphery of the ring or annulus and a clip is then engaged over the ring or rim in either of two general ways, depending on whether the pin curl is to lie generally flat against the head or perpendicular thereto.

Because of the general cross-sectional configuration of the ring or annulus, the clip engages the same in the same general way whichever type of curl is desired and serves both to retain the wound hair on the periphery of the curler and to retain the curler in the proper position with respect to the scalp of the person whose hair is being curled. Of course the fact that a single simple manipulation accomplishes both the securement of the wound hair to the annulus and the securement of the annulus to the scalp in the desired position enhances the usefulness and desirability of the device of the present invention.

Representative embodiments of the apparatus of the present invention comprising a ring or annulus and clip members of various forms for use in combination therewith in forming pin curls are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in detail in the following specification. However, it is to be understood that the embodiments thus illustrated are by way of example only and that various modifications may be made without departing from the principles of the invention, the scope of which is limited only as defined in the appended claim.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of the pin curl forming annulus of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view taken diametrically across the annulus of FIG. 1 with a curl securing and anrgilus positioning spring clip device associated therewit FIG. 3 is an elevational view of a modified form of spring clip device; and

FIG. 4 is a similar view of a further modified form of spring clip device.

In the drawing like characters of reference denote like parts and the numeral 10 designates an annulus of resilient plastic material, such for instance as polyethylene. Annulus 10 may be provided in various diameters, the cross sectional configuration of the annulus being the same in the various diameters. The annulus 10 has a peripheral groove 11 about which hair is wound in forming pin curls according to the present invention. 'It will be noted that the annulus is of generally rectangular cross section and, more particularly, that its extent in an axial direction is relatively short as compared with its diameter.

While the drawing is not intended to be dimensionally accurate, it will be noted in a general way that the radial thickness of the rectangular cross section is approximately one tenth of the inside diameter of the an nulus in the present instance. Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the axial extent of the annulus is approximately one-third of its inside diameter.

While various non-circular cross sections may be employed, the generally rectangular cross section cooperates in a simple manner with the hair-retaining and annuluspositioning clip or similar member for retaining the annulus in a desired angular relationship with respect to the scalp.

This leaves the central portion of the device entirely open and permits cooperation of the annulus 10 with novel means for retaining wound hair thereon and for retaining the annulus in either of two desired positional relationships with respect to the scalp of the person whose hair is being treated.

FIG. 2 shows one form of spring clip for use in combination with annulus 10, the clip being designated generally by the numeral 13. Clip 13 comprises a pair of generally flat metal arm members, the lower arm being designated 14 and the upper arm 15. Arms 14 and 15 are pivoted to each other in a conventional manner by a pivot pin 16, a torsion spring 17 being provided to urge the arms toward each other.

In the form shown in FIG. 2 upper arm 15 is formed with rectangular bent formation portions 17, 18 and 19. FIG. 2 shows clip 13 engaged across annulus 10, the bent formations 17 and 18 being employed in this instance to engage diametrically opposite portions of annulus 10. Arm 14 is projected beneath the hair adjacent to the hair which is wound upon annulus 10 and the latter is thus securely retained flatwise against the scalp. The hair wound on annulus is designated 21 and the remaining hair of the scalp is indicated schematically at 22 in FIG. 2.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show schematically several alternate forms of clip 13. The clip shown in FIG. 3 is designated 2'4 and differs from clip 13 only in the form of the upper arm 25 which includes rectangular bends 26 and 27 for securing annulus 10 fiatwise. The clip shown in FIG. 4 is designated 30 and differs from clip 13 only in the form of upper arm 31 which has a single generally central rectangular bend 32 for securing the annulus 10 in perpendicular position.

In the case of perpendicular pin curls which are formed with the annulus 10 in the position shown in dot and dash lines in FIG. 2, a special clip is not essential and a standard hair clip of the general type shown in the drawing but without the rectangular bent formations may be employed. Such a clip looks substantially like the clip of FIG. 4 but with the bend 32 omitted.

Further, the clip of FIG. 3 may be used for such perpendicular curls by merely engaging the annulus beneath the fiat portion of the arm 25 of the clip between the formations 26 and 27.

I claim:

In combination, a pin curl forming device comprising a one-piece flexible plastic annular curl winding member having a central circumferentially extending groove in its exterior periphery adapted to receive hair wound circularly about said member, said annular member having axial extent, and curl-retaining clip means comprising a pair of arms and resilient means urging the arms toward each other, one of said arms having a pair of offset portions for receiving diametrically opposite rim portions of said annular member, said clip means being applied across said annular member to bear against the opposed radial faces thereof with said rim portions disposed in said olfsets whereby the later retain a curl wound in said groove, one of said arms being engageable with adjacent hair of the scalp to retain said annular member flatwise against the scalp.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,400,488 5/ 1946' Cochran 132-46 2,426,258 8/ 1947 Casazza 13246 2,682,878 7/1954 Pisciotta 132-40 2,764,987 10/ 6 lBraga 132-50 2,875,770 3/1959 Isbell 13240 3,057,366 10/ 1962 Fink. 3,162,993 12/ 1964 Green 242118 X FOREIGN PATENTS 982,393 1/1951 France.

1,228,254 3/ 1960 France.

OTHER REFERENCES German printed application (Weaver et al.), 1,004,348, March 1957.

RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

R. L. PINKS, Assistant Examiner. 

